The Twin Shepards
by RetroRebel85
Summary: The Shepard Twins are both considered for the Spectre candidacy, but when their mission to Eden Prime goes horribly wrong, they're left to uncover the trails and conspiracies behind Saren Arterius. Novelization, twin male/femshep.
1. Prologue: Under Cover of Night

**The Twin Shepards**

**Prologue: Under Cover of Night**

**Earth, 2154 **

"And you're sure about this?" the woman at the orphanage asked, staring into the basket before her.

"I'm positive. My wife's dead and I've been drafted into colonial service." The man's thick, half English accent growled under his cloak. Matthew Shepard stopped for a second, and his voice cracked as he began to speak again. "These kids are all the Shepard family has left."

The two infants in the carrier gurgled happily at their father. He smiled back at them, offering a finger for them to play with as he signed the forms.

"They'll be safe, right?" he asked warily. The elderly woman behind the desk sighed, having repeated the same words over and over again what seemed like a million times before.

"Lieutenant Shepard, they'll be fine. I understand your hesitation and confusion, believe me, I know. Your children will be safe, and you can arrange meeting times when you're off-duty." She smiled reassuringly, albeit half-heartedly, and took the form off him. Looking once more at the children, he noticed his daughter had fallen asleep.

"I... don't know if I'll be returning. My commander says it's a suicide mission." He frowned, stroking the baby's cheek.

The woman remained silent, searching for words that never arrived in her head. She looked down at the two children, fearful that they mightn't see their father again. She looked back up, but he had already left for the shuttle that would take him to Shanxi.

Eventually, Matthew Shepard was killed in action during the First Contact War, a fact his children never learned. The children never knew their parents. They survived after their orphanage was closed in the hidden underbelly of Vancouver. Eager for better lives, they joined the Alliance Military when they came of age. Hal was posted to Akuze: a lush world on the outskirts of Alliance space that had suddenly dropped out of contact. Arriving on the surface, his patrol found the settlement intact, but no survivors. At nightfall, the thresher maws struck – mindless abominations of teeth and tentacles that rose up from beneath the earth. Constant gunfire couldn't drown out the shrieks of his fellow soldiers as they were dragged down to a gruesome death. Fifty marines died on Akuze; Hal was the only one to make it back alive. A monument on the planet commemorates the massacre; a grim reminder of the price humanity must pay as they spread throughout the stars.

Faith, on the other hand, was assigned to the campaign to rid the Skyllian Verge of batarian slavers and other criminal elements. The final battle came when Alliance forces laid siege to Torfan, a slaver base built miles below the surface of a desolate moon. The superiority of the Alliance fleet was wasted in the assault on the underground bunker, but she led a corps of elite ground troops into the heart of the enemy base. Nearly three-quarters of her squad perished in the vicious close-quarters fighting, a cost she was willing to pay to ensure not a single batarian made it out of Torfan alive.

Both suffering from serious psychological scars, the twins were put together and reassigned to the SSV Normandy in 2183 under the command of Captain David Edward Anderson. Their lives had until this point already been filled with turmoil and distress.

Little did they know it would only get far, far worse.


	2. Arcturus Station: Pride of the Job

**Arcturus Station: Pride of the Job**

Faith sat in a seat beside her older brother Hal. She ran a hand through her short black hair, admiring the sleek design of the ship they were to be posted to.

"And we've been recommended by Captain Anderson?" Hal asked, his voice filling the room and shattering Faith's thoughts.

"Basically, yes. I can't stay for much longer, Commander. Anderson will be around in a few minutes to formally welcome you aboard the cruiser, I think you'll like it. Before I leave, do you have any questions?" the Admiral asked through the vid-comm. Hal shook his head, sinking backwards into the hard plastic seats. Faith spoke up.

"I don't understand this. Look at us; the Butcher of Torfan and the sole survivor of Akuze. With all due respect, sir, we aren't special material!" she glared in the admiral's direction. The man sighed, lifting a datapad to his eyes and studying it.

"You've both done incredible things." He answered.

"Bullshit. There's men and women who've done twice as much as we have." She raised her voice.

"Faith." Hal whispered. She stopped, and cleared her throat.

"My apologies, Admiral."

"Keep yourself under control, Staff Sergeant. You're only accompanying the ship on its shakedown cruise." The other man nodded at them, his voice suddenly stern at this point after her outburst.

"Who's the crew?" Hal asked in a polite tone, attempting to defuse the situation between the Admiral and his sister. He looked at her briefly; she was adjusting her Omni-tool now.

The Admiral took a deep breath and began to list off the important crew members, "Pilot, Flight Lieutenant Jeff "Joker" Moreau. Navigator, Charles Pressly. Medic, Dr Karin Chakwas. Engineer, Gregory Adams. Your team onboard will be Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, Corporal Richard Jenkins and your sister, Staff Sergeant Faith Shepard."

Hal counted the names down in his head, and laughed quietly to himself. Like the games when they were children, Hal was in charge of his squad.

"No more questions, Admiral." Faith spoke up.

"Alright. Hackett out." Said the Admiral, and then he disappeared off their screen. The door knocked, a steady yet loud bang that was probably more forceful than it was meant to be. It opened to reveal a middle-aged man, clad in Alliance dress uniform, standing in the entrance.

"Commander, Sergeant." He greeted them, a slightly gruff accent that Hal had heard at least once before in a vid about the N7 program. This was Captain David Anderson. The twins stood to attention and saluted him. "Captain Anderson." They spoke in unison, smiling proudly in his presence. He had an aura that seemed to command loyalty in the people around him.

"At ease. Follow me." He smiled at them, beckoning the twins to follow him. They moved around the floating fortress that was Arcturus Station, the occasional gasp of awe and delight from Hal as he looked out several windows into the stretching, expansive void outside. Anderson chuckled at his wonder. He'd seen the likes of the man before, wide-eyed idealists that were amazed that they'd come this far. Faith rolled her eyes. She, on the other hand, would've been happy on Earth. Although, she had to admit, the wonders of the galaxy were definitely a bonus to the Alliance job. Two soldiers, a large and very built Hispanic man and a slightly shorter woman in full armour, stood in front of them with their weapons at their sides.

"Captain, Commander, Staff Sergeant." The man stood to attention, saluting them.

"At ease, Lieutenant Vega." Anderson dismissed the soldier, and his hand returned to his side. "Sir, Captain Toni wanted to speak with you alongside Admiral Kahoku. Something about someone called Banes?" said Vega. Anderson groaned quietly. "I see. I'll be there after I've taken these two to the ship."

"She's ready?" the woman asked, breaking her silence.

"As ready as she can be." Vega nodded, and shouted an order of approval to the guard in the room behind them.

The trio caught sight of their destination almost immediately, after Anderson opened his Omni-tool and tapped a command into it. The shutters at the dock shuddered upwards, and as if by magic a flurry of lights danced around the room before them, directing all attention to the ship in front of them. Both Shepards gasped. This would be their new home for a while, and they were definitely excited to be onboard. This ship was the culmination of a joint effort between the turian and Alliance navy. She was the SSV Normandy SR-1. Her engines flared excitedly through the hangar, as if urging them to get onboard as soon as possible. Faith took off, running towards the ship quickly. Hal stood there, in shock and amazement.

"What's wrong, Commander?" Anderson asked.

"She's amazing. I thought we'd be assigned to the Kilimanjaro or the Arcadia!" he beamed. Anderson was surprised at his almost child-like happiness. The sole survivor of Akuze was grinning like an idiot at this ship's exterior.

"You haven't seen her inside yet, Shepard. Come on. You'll be accompanying a Spectre on this run. Turian named Nihlus Kryik. Very stoic, and impossible to talk to, but you won't need to speak with him for a good part of the mission." Said the Captain, leading the marine onto the ship.

"Normandy. Nice name." Faith laughed to herself, waiting impatiently for her brother at the entrance.


	3. SSV Normandy: Precious Cargo

**SSV Normandy: Precious Cargo**

Anderson stood firm at the Galaxy Map, taking control of the ship's intercommunications device to speak to the whole crew.

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please?" he asked in a softer, polite tone of voice than the Shepards had heard before. He turned to them and smiled conspiratorially. Hal seemed to get his meaning straight away, although Faith didn't. "I'd like to introduce our brand new members of the team. And, as far as I know, the only twins on the Normandy!" some of the crew laughed together, some just stared at the man. He continued. "Say hello to Commander Shepard and Staff Sergeant Shepard!" he called, and made a motion telling them to come forward.

"Hello, Cleveland." Hal chuckled, and the crew stayed completely silent. Faith laughed at him, not with him, and took the microphone off him. "Alright, we run this ship military, an-"she began, but was interrupted by the Captain. "Actually, Commander, _I _run this ship." he said, cutting her off entirely. "I'm sure we'll all get along just nicely." She quietly stated, pulling away from the microphone.

"I'll be taking a meeting between myself and a few other members of the Command in my quarters, Commander." Anderson said to Hal. He nodded at the man, saluting respectfully. "And you can knock that shit off, I don't care. As far as we go, we're friends." He smiled, pulling his dog tags out from under his dress uniform. He spun them around, displaying a glinting 'N7' engraved into one.

"You're N7 too?" Hal asked.

"Like you and your sister, yes."

And it was true that the Shepards and Anderson were graduates of the N7 Program. They earned their place rightfully, performing training at Vila Militar in Brazil then each completing their N6 rank on Akuze and Torfan before being elevated to N7. It was emblazoned on their armour, and basically every piece of clothing they could wear in the Alliance marines had it too. Hal was quite fond of a leather jacket with the insignia on it, whereas Faith preferred simply wearing her off-duty uniform. As Anderson left, for his meeting, Hal watched him go whilst Faith made her way to the cockpit to meet with the crew.

"So, you're the pilot?" she asked him, approaching the man in the chair. Joker grunted, turning his head slightly to meet her. His cap covered his eyes from Faith, but she could see a beard that was well looked after at least.

"Is it really that obvious?" he clapped sarcastically at her newfound detective skills. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau. But you can call me Joker!" he smirked, dragging a panel across his viewing screen and locking it in place. Faith looked over his shoulder, watching the writing fly furiously past his eyes as he accepted docking procedures and began to move Normandy off Arcturus.

"Why do they call you Joker?" she asked, genuinely curious. The only "Jokers" she knew were in cards and an ancient comic book villain. And he didn't seem to be a wild card or a murderous clown in her eyes. She sensed his annoyance at being asked the question. "Cause I _love_ to make children laugh." He said, completely deadpan. She raised her eyebrows, and he exhaled sharply. "Look, one of my instructors at flight school said I never smiled, and that I worked too hard. The name stuck, I guess." He finished the story and returned to the panels. Faith shrugged, and walked towards the Galaxy Map.

Captain Anderson hadn't retired to his quarters. He had left the ship entirely, entering a briefing room back in Arcturus. Ambassador Donnel Udina and Admiral Steven Hackett were already sitting down. They rose to greet Anderson, all of them sitting down again. The room was lit a dark blue, the holographic profiles of both Shepards hanging in the air in front of them. A coffee cup sat beside Hackett, whilst Udina had an ashtray filled with electronic cigarettes.

"Anderson. The council are ready to accept Humanity into the Spectres, and we've already discussed the Shepards as potential candidates." Said Udina, his nasal voice and smug demeanour already beginning to annoy Anderson. Hackett spoke up.

"There can only be one of them accepted though. At most, one will go through and the other becomes his or her advisor." He said. Anderson rubbed his chin. "Right..." he sighed.

"I'm hesitant to accept either of them right now." Udina grumbled.

"Why?" asked Hackett.

"Hal saw his whole unit die on Akuze. He could have some serious psychological scars." Anderson admitted. "And Faith got her entire squad killed on Torfan." He put his elbows on the table, pressing his fist to his jaw for support.

"But she did get the job done!" Udina said. The lights in the room flickered, and a voice came over the PA system.

"Uh, Captain? Can we get going now?" Joker's playfully pleading voice filtered through the air.

"Look, Captain, Nihlus is going with you. He'll decide further, deal?" Hackett held his hand out for Anderson, who shook it quickly.

"Anderson, are they the kind of people we _want_ protecting the galaxy?" Udina asked, furrowing his brow at the Captain.

"They're the only people that _can_ protect the galaxy." Anderson glared at him, turning around and leaving the men in the room.


	4. SSV Normandy: Calm Before the Storm

**SSV Normandy: Calm Before the Storm**

The next day, the familiar alarm Hal had grown used to in Boot Camp sounded throughout the Normandy, echoing in his ears. He groaned, having gotten almost no sleep at all as he noticed the severe lack of engine noise, something that soothed him to sleep while he served on the SSV Caroline during his mission to Akuze. In the bunk below him came the anguished swearing of his sister, who had an even worse night.

"Rise and shine, dumbass." She moaned, punching the bottom of Hal's mattress. He slid off the bed, opening his footlocker and searching for their armours. Onyx IV's, both proudly displaying a glistening N7 logo on the chest. As they pulled said protective clothing on, they headed out to the mess hall to collect their canned breakfasts. The hall was dimly lit, much like the rest of the Normandy at the time, yet packed and loud with most of her crew. Joker and Anderson were nowhere to be seen. Rumours and murmurs of a turian spectre floated through the air alongside the dark fragrance of the coffee that was being brewed onsite by Mess Sergeant Phelps. Kaidan was already sitting in a chair facing Dr Chakwas and Corporal Jenkins. "Ah, Commanders Shepard. Or is it Commander Shepards?" she asked, shaking their hands.

"I'm not a commander. It's "Staff Sergeant Shepard" for now." Faith sighed, taking a mug of a dark brown, murky liquid and her issued meal, 'eggs' and 'bacon'. Chakwas nodded. "At least you can enjoy the alliteration!" she smiled, making a tiny smirk appear at the corner of Faith's mouth.

Hal retrieved his meal and sat down, relaxing in his chair. Over the loudspeaker, a news broadcast from the Alliance News Network was just finishing. "But these reported geth sightings could be either a dangerous fact or a malicious rumour intended to spread fear around the galaxy. I've been Diana Allers, signing off." The radio silenced, cutting to a split-second of dead air before standard broadcasting returned.

"It can be whatever you want it to be, doc." Hal smiled, looking at Jenkins. He was shaking in both fear and admiration, staring wide-eyed at them. "Wow… the Butcher of Torfan an-" he began to speak, being cut off when Faith's hand suddenly came to his throat. She squeezed her hand, making him choke as she did. Chakwas pulled her chair out cautiously, keeping her distance from

"That is _NOT_ my name." she glared at the young soldier as the hall suddenly fell silent. Kaidan let out a nervous laugh, pleading mentally to Hal to defuse the tense situation. Faith stood up, taking a swig of her coffee and leaving her plate on the table, leaving the room angrily. Hal sighed, poking the rubbery egg and bacon in front of him absent-mindedly with his fork.

Jenkins looked like he was about to start crying. "Wow… I've been shot at before and I've never been that scared." He whispered.

"Careful there, Corporal. You look like you've just crapped yourself." Kaidan rolled his eyes, wiping his forehead free of a bead of sweat. "Not to break protocol, Commander, but is she always like that?" he asked.

"Sometimes she is, yeah. But you'll get used to it." Hal smiled. "Strange lack of Captain Anderson." He noted. Chakwas looked up from her meal, swallowing her food before speaking. "He's been talking to that turian spectre, Nihlus Kryik. Odd name, and some of the crew, namely Pressly, is nervous about him. It's probably just so he can watch how the Normandy performs." She finished. Jenkins immediately perked up again.

"Wow, a spectre? Why would they send a turian spectre on a shakedown run?" he asked.

"Did you not pay attention to a word I said?" Chakwas answered his question with a question, dumbfounded.

"Sorry, doc, no I didn't." he looked down at his food, pushing the plate away. "I'm not hungry. You want some bacon, Commander Sir?" he smiled happily at Hal, who took the meat from him, remembering the ancient videos on the extranet of the men who crafted masterpieces from bacon. "Why's your sister like that?" Kaidan asked. "Come on, Alenko. Don't pretend you don't know. She sent most of her squad to their deaths. Don't mention it to her." Hal nodded to each of them around the table before leaving to find her. If what Chakwas said was true, then they had nothing to worry about. But even Hal had his doubts as to the mission. Surely they could've sent a general or someone else to oversee their first mission, not a spectre. Shepard knew nothing about the world they were going to, having only been briefly spoken to about it. But what he did know was that there was something wrong, and Nihlus was at the centre of it.

Faith sat in the hangar, resting against the wheels of the M35 Mako sitting quietly there. The lift shuddered and came to a halt to her left, and from it emerged her brother. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the datapad she was reading.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine. Don't bother pursuing it, because I'm not in the damn mood." she sighed heavily, looking towards the floor. She scratched at a freckle on her arm, pulling her sleeves back and noticing several scars. One from a batarian slave dealer, one from slashing her arm open during a training exercise and the other from an Omni-blade that sliced through her armour on Torfan. She smiled, remembering the vengeance she'd wreaked upon the slaver after he cut her.

"_You'll die for that, you bitch!" he'd shouted, rushing towards her with his blade raised above his head, but she was too fast, grabbing the nearest guard's Predator and firing at him, wounding his hip and blinding one of his eyes. The batarian fell to the ground, writhing in pain. _

"_This place will become your tomb, Balak." She glared at him, picking up her rifle and leaving the camp._

"Faith." Hal's voice brought her back from her memories. "Anderson wants to see us." He held out his hand, lifting her to her feet.

"Can't wait." She smirked, leading him to the lift. They stood, awkwardly, as it ascended.

"Really slow." Hal mused. And yes, the elevator took what seemed like an eternity to arrive at their destination.

"Yeah." Faith sighed. "Real slow."


End file.
